Rotary brush



July 11, 1967 G. HACKWORTH ROTARY BRUSH 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 27, 1965 July 11, 1967 L, G. HACKWORTH 3,329,986

ROTARY BRUSH Filed May 27, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I NVEN TOR.

Z/ ayd if/ackwar/h I United States Patent 3,329,986 ROTARY BRUSH Lloyd G. Hackworth, 3708 South 29th West Ave.,

Tulsa, Okla. 74107 Filed May 27, 1965, Ser. No. 459,356 2 Claims. (Cl. -179) This invention relates to improvements in rotary brushes and more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a disposable sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush such as utilized with street sweeping vehicles, or the like.

Many vehicles utilized for industrial or street cleaning purposes are provided with relatively large substantially cylindrical, horizontally disposed brushes or brooms for sweeping the street as the vehicle moves therealong. These cylindrical brushes normally comprise a centrally disposed core member having a cylindrical sleeve carried thereby with the sleeve being provided with radially extending bristles therearound for performing the sweeping operation. When the bristles become sufliciently worn to decrease the efliciency of the sweeping operation it will be apparent that the bristles must be replaced or restored in some manner.

Many of these brushes in use today are provided with brooms of a unitary type construction which requires removal of the entire broom structure from. the vehicle in order to repair the broom or replace the bristles. In these instances it is usually necessary to return or ship the broom to a repair establishment where the broom may be refilled with bristles. Of course, it is then necessary to retain a spare broom for use while the worn broom is being repaired. Other types of brushes in use today are provided with independent sleeves which may be removed from the core structure when repair work is necessary.

In this case, however, it is usually necessary to ship the entire sleeve to the repair establishment, and here again it is the usual practice to retain a spare filled sleeve for use during the repair operation. Considering the fact that most of these brooms weigh approximately five hundred pounds, it will be readily apparent that the freight or shipping costs for sending the broom both to and from the repair establishment may be quite high. In addition, the usual spare broom structure which must be retained in storage for use during a repair operation is normally provided with a center shaft which extends longitudinally.-

from the ends of the broom, thus requiring storage thereof on racks, or the like.

The present invention contemplates a novel sleeve and brush for rotary brush vehicles of this type wherein the sleeve and brush portion are completely disposable'The sleeve may be constructed of a suitable synthetic plastic material which is both light weight and inexpensive. The bristles may be constructed or made integral with the sleeve and the structure may be utilized with substantially any standard brush type vehicle in use today. When the bristles become Worn, the entire sleeve, including the worn bristles, may be discarded and replaced with a new sleeve having the bristles thereon. This eliminates the necessity of shipping a sleeve back to a repair establishment for work-over, and thus eliminates the necessity of paying the freight for two-way shipment thereof. Freight need only be paid on the one-way shipment for the original order for the sleeves. Since the sleeves are of considerably less weight than the conventional type utilized today, the reduction in shipping costs are considerable. Furthermore, it is not necessary to maintain a spare broom at all times since the Worn sleeve may be immediately replaced with a new sleeve, and there will be no time interval during any repair operation. In addition, the novel disposable sleeve may be readily stored in an "on end position whenever it is desirable to store spare or extra sleeve and bristle units. The novel disposable sleeve and bristle unit is simple and efiicient in operation and economical and durable in construction.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a novel sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush for use with street cleaning vehicles, or the like, wherein the costs of repair or replacement of the worn unit are greatly reduced.

It is another object of this invention to provide a novel sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush wherein the weight of the sleeve and bristle unit is reduced to a minimum for facilitating handling thereof during shipping and installation on the brush vehicle.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush which is 'disposable, thereby eliminating the necessity of refilling of the sleeve with bristles when the bristles become worn.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a novel disposable sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush vehicle which may be readily removed and replaced upon wear thereof.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel disposable sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush which is simple and eflicient in operation and economical and durable in construction.

Other and further objects and advantageous features of the present invention will hereinafter more fully appear in connection with a detailed description of the drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a sectional elevational view of a rotary brush embodying the invention with only a portion of the bristles depicted for purposes of illustration.

FIGURE 2 is a sectional elevational view of a core member such as may be utilized in combination with the invention.

FIGURE 3 is an end elevational view of the core mem* ber depicted in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is an end elevational view of a sleeve embodying the invention.

FIGURE 5 is a broken sectional elevational view of one end of a rotary brush embodying the invention.

Referring to the drawings in detail, reference character 10 generally indicates a substantially cylindrical rotary brush structure comprising a longitudinally extending central core structure 12 having a brush sleeve 14 removably disposed thereon. The core structure 12 may be of any suitable type, and as depicted herein comprises a central tube 16 having end plate members 18 and 20 secured to the opposite ends thereof in any well known manner. A plurality of spaced radially extending plate members (not shown) may be secured around the outer periphery of the tube 16 and interposed between the end plates 18 and 20, if desired. A sleeve member 24 is secured between the end plates 18 and 20 in any suitable manner and is preferably of an outer diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the plates 18 and 20 as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, but not limited thereto. A plurality of circumferentially spaced longitudinally extending guide members or rails 26 are suitably secured to the outer periphery of the sleeve 24 for a purpose as will be hereinafter set forth.

The brush sleeve 14 is preferably of a substantially cylindrical configuration and is constructed from a suitable synthetic plastic material, such as polyethylene or polystyrene. The inner diameter of the sleeve 14 is preferably slightly greater than the outer diameter of the core sleeve 24, but slightly less than the diameter inscribed or determined by the outer extremities of the longitudinal rail members 26. A plurality of circumferentially spaced longitudinally extending grooves or recesses 28 are provided on the inner periphery of the sleeve 14 and are of secured to the core end plates The .plates 32 and "of threaded stud members 36, which extend O-rings 44 provide a dual function in a complementary configuration with respect to the rail members therein. Suitable bristles, indicated at 30 in FIGURE 1, are provided on the outer periphery of the sleeve 14, as will be hereinafter set forth.

The sleeve 14 may be positioned around the outer periphery of the core sleeve 14 by sliding the sleeve 14 i therealong with the rails or guide members 26 disposed within the grooves28. End plate members 32. and 34 I may be disposed at the opposite ends of the sleeve 14 and 18 and 20, respectively. 34 may be removably secured to the plates 18 and 20 in any suitable manner such as by means through the plates 32 and 34 and through apertures 38 (FIG. 3) provided inthe plates 18 and 20. It is preferable to interpose a plate or disc 40 between the plates 32 and 18 and a similar plate 42 between the plates 34 and 20. A sealing member, such as an O-ring 44 is preferably disposed around the outer periphery of each disc 40 and 42 for .a purpose as will be hereinafter set forth. It may be desirable to provide an annular recess portion 46 at each end of the sleeve 14 for receiving the O-ring 42 therein. The that they provide a self-centering ring for the sleeve 14, and, in addition, provide a seal between the sleeve 14 and plates 40 and 42.

The bristles 30 are preferably secured integrally with the sleeve 14 whereby the sleeve and bristles provide a unit which is readily disposable. The bristles may be secured around the outer periphery of the sleeve 14 in substantially any suitable manner. For example, a spiral or helical groove (not shown) may be provided on the outer periphery of thesleeve 14, with the groove either being formed during the construction of the sleeve or machined therein subsequent to the construction or molding of the sleeve. The usual elongated strand (not shown) carrying outwardly extending bristles, such as the bristles 30, may be disposed within the spiral or helical groove and retained therein in the usual manner, such as by a suitable cable, cord, or the like (not shown). Another method of providingbristles for the outer periphery of the sleeve is to embed the fibers or bristle in a light weight channel member (not shown) and wind the channel in a spiral or helical path around the' outer periphery of the sleeve 14. The channel may be secured to the sleeve by means of a screw, or the like, and it may only be necessary to secure the channel at one end of thesleeve. Still another method of securing bristles to the sleeve 14 is to provide a series or plurality of longitudinally and circumferentially spaced holes in the outer periphery of the sleeves, with the holes being either drilled therein or formed therein during the constructionthereof. Tufts of fibers or bristles may then be staple set in the holes in any well known manner.

In order to assemble the rotary brush 10, it is merely necessary toinsert the core member 12 within the sleeve 14, or slide the sleeve 14 longitudinally along the outer periphery of the core member, with the guide members 26 being disposed within the grooves 28. It maybe preferable to secure one end plate, such as the end plate 34, to to the respective core end plate 20, with the disc 42 and O-ring 44 interposed therebetween, prior to placing of the sleeve 14 around the core 12. When the sleeve 14 is in abutment with the'plate 34, the second plate32 may then be secured to the second core end plate 18, with the disc and O-ring 44 interposedjtherebetween. When the bristles 30 become sufficiently worn as to reduce the sweeping efficiency of the brush 10, the sleeve 14 and bristles 30 carried thereby may be readily removed from the core 12. One of the end plates, such as the end plate 32, may be removed'from the engagement with the core 7 end plate 18, whereupon the sleeve 14 carrying the bristles 30 may be withdrawn from the position on the core 12.

The removed sleeve 14 and worn bristles 30 carried thereby may. then be discarded or disposed of, and 'a new sleeve, filled with new bristles, may be disposed on the core 12 in lieu thereof. g

As hereinbefore set forth, whereas the core 12 depicted herein has been found to be very suitable for use with the disposable sleeve 14, the sleeve 14 may be utilized with substantially any core member in use today.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a novel disposable sleeve and bristle unit for a rotary brush such as utilized in street cleaning vehicles, or the like. The novel disposable sleeve brush unit may be utilized with substantially any standard rotary brush vehicle in use today. In addition, the sleeve unit is of a light weight construction, and when the economical and durable in construction.

Change may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts as heretofore'set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being understood that'any modification in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made within the scope of the following claims,

without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a rotary street sweeping brush having a centrally disposed longitudinally extending core member with longitudinally extending guide members on'the outer periphery thereof, abrush sleeve unit comprising a cylindrical member removablydisposed on the core member, a plurality of longitudinally extending circumferentially spaced guide channels provided on the inner periphery of the sleeve member for facilitating installation and removal of the cylindrical member on the core member, end plate member's removably secured to the opposite ends of the core member for retaining the cylindrical member in position thereon, an O-ring at each end of said sleeve and interposed between the core member and cylindricalmember for providing self-centering means therebetween, and bristle means integrally carried by the cylindrical member whereby the bristle means and cylindrical member may be removed from the core member and discarded when the bristles become worn;

2; A structure as defined in claim 1 wherein .said'cylindrical sleeve member is constructed from a light weight synthetic plastic material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,422,100 7/1922 Hofi". 1,482,744 2/ 1924 Hefierman 15 -479 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,167,791 5/1964 'Germany.

2 CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner.

PETER FELDMAN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A ROTARY STREET SWEEPING BRUSH HAVING A CENTRALLY DISPOSED LONGITUDINALLY EXTEDNING CORE MEMBER WITH LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING GUIDE MEMBERS ON THE OUTER PERIPHERY THEREOF, A BRUSH SLEEVE UNIT COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL MEMBER REMOVABLY DISPOSED ON THE CORE MEMBER, A PLURALITY OF LONGITUDINALLY EXTEDNING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED GUIDE CHANNELS PROVIDED ON THE INNER PERIPHERY OF THE SLEEVE MEMBER FOR FACILITATING INSTALLATION AND REMOVAL OF THE CYLINDRICAL MEMBER ON THE CORE MEMBER, END PLATE MEMBERS REMOVABLY SECURED TO THE OPPOSITE ENDS OF THE CORE MEMBER FOR RETAINING THE CYLINDRICAL MEMBER IN POSITION THEREON, AN O-RING AT EACH END OF SAID SLEEVE AND INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE CORE MEMBER AND CYLINDRICAL MEMBER FOR PROVIDING SELF-CENTERING MEANS THEREBETWEEN, AND BRISTLE MEANS INTERGRALLY CARRIED BY THE CYLINDRICAL MEMBER WHEREBY THE BRISTLE MEANS AND CYLINDRICAL MEMBER MAY BE REMOVED FROM THE CORE MEMBER AND DISCARDED WHEN THE BRISTLES BECOME WORN. 